CFPB’s CU Advisory Group Gather for First Meeting Thursday

Fifteen credit union executives, members of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s Credit Union Advisory Council, met in Washington on Thursday for the first time to provide feedback to the regulator.

According to the council’s charter, the information gained from the group will be used to “better inform the CFPB’s policy development, rulemaking and engagement functions.”

The council does not include representatives from the four credit unions that currently have more than $10 billion in assets, a category that falls under the CFPB’s direct examination duties.

The bureau, in selecting the council members, was aiming to “assemble experts in consumer protection, financial services, community development, fair lending and civil rights, as well as representatives from credit unions that serve underserved communities and those that are located in areas that have been significantly impacted by higher-priced mortgage loans.

The CFPB also said the council members are not being compensated for their time nor reimbursed for expenses related to their participation; instead, the credit unions or their sponsoring trade organizations must foot the bill.

The group is anticipated by the bureau to meet four times per year, with at least two of those meetings taking place in person at the CFPB’s headquarters in Washington. The remaining sessions are expected to take place via conference call, the regulator said.